John Niven
Scottish author and screenwriter

John Niven

John Niven (born 1966) is a Scottish author and screenwriter. His books include Kill Your Friends, The Amateurs, The Second Coming and O Brother.

Career

Born in Irvine, Ayrshire, Niven read English literature at the University of Glasgow, graduating in 1991 with First Class honours. For the next ten years, he worked for a variety of record companies, including London Records and Independiente. He left the music industry to write full-time in 2002 and published Music from Big Pink, a book about The Band’s album of the same name, in 2005 (Continuum Press). The book was optioned for the screen by CC Films with a script written by English playwright Jez Butterworth.

Niven's breakthrough novel Kill Your Friends is a satire of the music business, based on his brief career in A&R, during which he passed up the chance to sign Coldplay and Muse. The novel was published by William Heinemann in 2008 to much acclaim, with The Word magazine describing it as "possibly the best British Novel since Trainspotting". It has been translated into seven languages and was a bestseller in Britain and Germany. Niven has since published The Amateurs (2009), The Second Coming (2011), Cold Hands (2012), Straight White Male (2013), The Sunshine Cruise Company (2015),[1] No Good Deed (2017) and Kill 'em All (2018).[2]

In 2023, Niven published O Brother, an autobiographical account of his childhood and adult life alongside his brother Gary, focusing on how they diverged as Niven became a successful writer while Gary’s career as a drug mule led to prison. Fiona Sturges in The Guardian wrote: "While Niven’s trademark black humour and blistering language remain intact, there is added vulnerability, emotional candour and bottomless love. His account of his brother’s death and the "Chernobyl of the soul" that followed made me sob more than once, and I suspect it will do the same to you."[3]

Niven also writes screenplays with writing partner Nick Ball, the younger brother of British TV presenter Zoë Ball. His journalistic contributions to newspapers and magazines include a monthly column for Q magazine, entitled "London Kills Me". In 2009 Niven wrote a controversial article for The Independent newspaper where he attacked the media's largely complacent coverage of Michael Jackson's death.[4]

In 2005 he co-wrote the lyrics of two songs on James Dean Bradfield's album The Great Western.[5]

Niven co-wrote the screenplay How to Build a Girl, opposite Caitlin Moran, based upon her novel of the same name, directed by Coky Giedroyc.[6]

Niven contributes regularly to Noble Rot Magazine, an independent publication about wine and food, and the Daily Record.[7]

An atheist and a republican, Niven refuses to sing "God Save the Queen" on ideological grounds.[citation needed]

Niven's debut play, The Battle, a comedy about the rivalry between English rock bands Oasis and Blur will open at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre in February 2026 before touring the UK.[8][9]

Bibliography

  • Music from Big Pink: A Novella (33 1/3) (2005)
  • Kill Your Friends (2008)
  • The Amateurs (2009)
  • The Second Coming (2011)
  • Cold Hands (2012)
  • Straight White Male (2013)
  • The Sunshine Cruise Company (2015)
  • No Good Deed (2017, ISBN 978-0434023295)
  • Kill 'Em All — sequel to Kill Your Friends (2018, ISBN 978-1785151576)
  • The F*ck-it List (2020, ISBN 978-0434023264)[10]
  • O Brother (2023)
  • The Fathers (2025)

Filmography

Plays

References

  1. ^ "Book review: The Sunshine Cruise Company by John Niven". The Independent. 13 August 2015. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  2. ^ Niven, John. "Kill 'Em All". www.penguin.co.uk. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  3. ^ Sturges, Fiona (20 August 2023). "O Brother by John Niven review – a searing study of siblings who go separate ways". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  4. ^ "Michael Jackson: Bad! And very dangerous". The Independent. 23 October 2011. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022.
  5. ^ Morris, Sophie (17 February 2008). "How We Met: John Niven & James Dean Bradfield – Profiles – People – The Independent". The Independent. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
  6. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (16 July 2018). "Beanie Feldstein Comedy 'How To Build A Girl' Adds Cast, Lionsgate With Shoot Under Way". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  7. ^ "Daily Record & Sunday Mail - Scottish News, Sport, Politics and Celeb gossip". dailyrecord. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  8. ^ Bamigboye, Baz (30 August 2024). "Breaking Baz: Oasis' Bitter '90s Britpop Clash With Blur Retold In West End-Bound Show 'The Battle'". Deadline. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
  9. ^ Wiegand, Chris; editor, Chris Wiegand Stage (29 April 2025). "Britpop battle between Blur and Oasis revisited in 'punchy' new comedy". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 29 April 2025. {{cite news}}: |last2= has generic name (help)
  10. ^ Niven, John (26 March 2020). The F*ck-it List: Is this the most shocking thriller of the year?. William Heinemann. ISBN 978-0-434-02326-4.
  • Author page on Penguin
  • https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/kill-your-friends-by-john-niven-780982.html
  • https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/jan/31/kill-your-friends-review
  • Interview in Shotsmag Ezine July 2012
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